Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Evagrius of Pontus, Talking Back: A Monastic Handbook for Combating Demons (Cistercian Studies) (9780879073299) Translated by David BrakkeThis book is available from Amazon.com

"How did the monks of the Egyptian desert fight against the demons that attacked them with tempting thoughts? How could Christians resist the thoughts of gluttony, fornication, or pride that assailed them and obstructed their contemplation of God? According to Evagrius of Pontus (345-349), one of the greatest spiritual directors of ancient monasticism, the monks should "talk back" to demons with relevant passages from the Bible. His book 'Talking Back (Antirrheticos) lists over 500 thoughts or circumstances in which the demon-fighting monk might find himself, along with the biblical passages with which the monk should respond. It became one of the most popular books among the ascetics of late antiquity and the Byzantine east, ...( from the backcover)

From the IntroductionLuke Dysinger provides a description of the diverse aspects of monastic antirrhesis, which means refutation or contradiction: "In the practice of antirrhesis select biblical verses are employed to counteract the particular logismos (thought) against which the monk is struggling. Antirrhesis entails the deployment of biblical texts not only against the demons and their logismoi (thoughts), but also against sinful tendencies within the self, and even more broadly as 'refutations' of particular groups of people and forms of behaviour. Furthermore, antirrhetic biblical texts may console the tempted soul and remind it of virtues opposed to logismoi. Finally antirrhesis also includes the offering to God of successful biblical prayers." p.14-15

"The words that the monk speaks have such power that the speaker need not understand their force, that is, both their meaning and their effectiveness, for them to repel the demons". p23

"Against the Thoughts of Gluttony5. Against the thought that says to me, "The command to fast is burdensome";The command that I give you this day is not burdensome, nor is it far from you. (Deut. 30:11) p.5415. Against the thought that says to me, "Do not wear yourself out so unsparingly and afflict your soul by keeping vigil":A broken and contrite heart God will not despise. (Ps 50:19)16. Against the thought that is anxious about food and drink and diligent about where it can get them:Cast your anxiety upon the Lord, and He will sustain you. (Ps 54:23) p.56

Against the Thoughts of Fornication3. Againstthe thought that supposes that in a single hour the evil thoughts of fornication will flee from it:I will not cast them out in one year, lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the land multiply against you. Gradually I will cast them out from before you, until you have increased and will inherit the land (Exod 23:29-30) p.69
17. Against the demon of fornication that wants to spoil and defile my chastity through thoughts: My God forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers (3Kgdms 20:3) p.7339. Against the unclean thought that entices us and turns us back to that sin for which we have many times repented before the Lord:Just as a dog, when it returns to its own vomit, becomes abominable, so is a fool who returns in his wickedness to his own sin (Prov 26:11) p.77

Concerning Love of Money7. Against the thought of love of money that neglects someone who has been sick with a long illness and is greatly afflicted by poverty:If your brother who is with you becomes poor and cannot support himself, you shall help him as a stranger and sojourner, and your brother shall live with you (Lev 25:35) p.878. Against the thought that demanded more manual labor from a brother than he is capable of:Each shall not oppress his brother in labors (Lev 25:46) p.879. Against the thought that seeks to keep resources for itself and does not want to give relief to one of the brothers from them:Cursed shall be your barns and your reserves. Cursed shall be the offspring of your belly and the fruits of your land (Deut 28:17-18) p.8742. Against the demon that said to us, "Property can, when a person acquires riches, serve the Lord":No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You can not serve God and wealth (Matt 6:24) p.9551. Against the thoughts that reconcile us to greed and do not see the idolatry that is born from it:Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming on those who are disobedient (Col 3:5-6) p.96

Concerning the Thoughts of the Demon of Sadness9. Against the soul that is afraid, as if God's angels do not watch over it: And look, I am sending my angel before you, so that it might keep watch over you along the way, so that it might lead you into the land that I have prepared for you.(Exod 23:20) p.10155. Against the evil spirit that opposes my soul, introduces and displays to me sins of the past, and tries to cast sadness into it (my soul):Do not rejoice over me, my enemy, because I have fallen. I shall rise up, for if I sit in darkness, the Lord serves as a light for me (Mic 7:8) p.11271. Against the soul's thought that supposes that it is tested beyond its strength:God is faithful, and he will not let you tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it(1 Cor 10:13) p.116

Against the Demon of Anger4. Against the thought that came from a slanderer and that arouses and stirs up rage against the brothers:You shall not accept an idle rumor (Exod 23:1) p.1205. Against the thought that is stirred up by anger and wants to revile the brothers:You shall abstain from every unjust word (Exod 23:7) p.1209. Against the soul that has neglected humility but longs to learn the ways of the Lord:He will guide the meek in judgement; he will teach the meek his ways(Ps 24:9) p.12119. Against the thought that is quickly aroused by anger and, based on a trivial pretext, agitates the intellect:A fool immediately announces his anger, but a clever man conceals his disgrace (Prov 12:16) p.12325. Against the soul that supposes that it is not the thought of anger that is an abomination before God, but only the sin that results from it:An unrighteous thought is an abomination to the Lord, but words of the pure ones are holy (Prov 15:26)31. Against the thought that provokes me to write to the person who has caused us trouble, harmful words that will strike his heart:Woe to those who write evil, for it is by writing that they wrote evil (Isa 10:1) p.12553. Against the thoughts that want to repay evil for evil:See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all (1 Thess 5:15) p.13064. Against the intellect that professes to love God but, thanks to hatred towards a brother, has renounced the earlier love:Those who say, "I love God", and hate their brothers, are liars; for those who do not love a brother whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen ( 1 John 4:20) p.132

Against the Thoughts of the Demon of Listlessness34. Against a soul that in listlessness thinks that there is no one who sees its afflictions:Do not say that a man has no visitation; indeed, he has a visitation from the Lord(Job 34:9) p.14144. Against the soul that has succumbed to listlessness and wants to return to its fleshly relatives: Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life(Matt 19:29) p.14357. Against the intellect that due to a thought of listlessness is thrown all over the place, at one time driven from places by anger, then at another time dragged by the throat to other places near the brothers, or to relatives in the world - a condition that has humiliated and wearied it:Blessed is anyone who endures temptation. Such a one has stood the test and will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him(James 1:12) p.146

Against the Thoughts from the Demon of Vainglory20. Against the thoughts that compel us because of vainglory to make known our illustrious way of life:Let your neighbour praise you, and not your own mouth, a stranger and not your own lips (Prov 27:2) p.15137. Against the soul that is troubled by vainglory and desires to learn the wisdom of the Greeks:For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God(1 Cor 3:19) p.15542. Against the thoughts of vainglory that requests gifts of healing or knowledge of God:You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures (James 4:3) p.157

Against the Cursed Thoughts of Pride1. Against the thought of pride that said to me, "I am the Lord's holy one": You are cursed above all cattle and all the beasts upon the earth. You will go on your breast and on your belly, and you will eat dirt all the days of your life (Gen 3:14) p.15912. Against the blasphemous thought that made us consider whether God is in us or not:You shall not tempt the Lord your God (Deut 6:16) p.16113. Against the soul that proudly supposes that by its own strengthit has conquered the demons that oppose our doing the commandments:Do not say in your heart, "My strength and the might of my hand have made for me this great power ." But you shall remember the Lord your God, who gives you the strength ( Deut 8:17-18) p.16231. Against the proud thought that derides the brothers on the pretext, : Look, they are neglecting the service of the commandments": The Lord opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (Prov 3:34) p.16635. Against the proud thought that considered me pure and victorious:Who will boast that he has a pure heart? Or who will boldly say that he is pure from sins? (Prov 20:9) p.16742. Against the proud thought that recounted for me the brother's sins:For who will be pure from uncleanness? Not even one, even if his life were one day upon the earth and he can count its months (Job 14:4-5) p.16843. Against the proud thought that exalts me on the pretext that there is no image of sin in my thinking: If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness(1 John 1:8-9) p.173

Blessed is our Lord Jesus Christ, our God, who has given us the victory over the thoughts of the demon of pride."

In spite of the fact that Evagrius was condemned as a heretic by the FifthEcumenical Council because his speculative work followed the teachings of Origen; Evagrius' 'practical' writings were expurgated, preserved andtransmitted to the entire hesychast tradition by his disciple St JohnCassian in his 'Institutes' and 'Conferences'. "The works of Evagrius included by St Nikodimos in the Philokalia vol. 1 all belong to the 'practical' side of Evagrius and contain little if any trace of suspect speculations.Several of Evagrius' works have come down under the name of other authors. This is the case with the writing 'On Prayer', which in the Greek Philokalia is ascribed to Neilos; but recent research has made it plain beyond any reasonable doubt that this is a writing of Evagrius"From 'The Philokalia Vol.1' p. 29-30, compiled by St Nikodemos of the Holy Mountain and St Makarius of Corinth, Translated by G.E.H. Palmer, Phillip Sherard and Kallistos Ware, Faber and Faber 1979.

Fr Placide Deseille in his 'Orthodox Spirituality and the Philokalia' p.17-18, Translated by Anthony P. Gythiel, Eighth Day Press 2008,states that: "In spite of this the expurgated work of Evagrius exercisesan immense influence on Christian spirituality. The Greek hesychast tradition follows entirely in its wake."

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Fr Zacharias Zacharou in his book The Hidden Man of the Heart, explains the gift of speaking in tongues and why it was given to the Church on the day of Pentecost.

"We know that the gift of speaking in tongues (glossolalia) was given to the nascent Church for a specific purpose. The old Israel had become accustomed to worshiping and praying in a largely external manner, and when the Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, He wanted this to change. His intention, therefore was to teach the people to pray in spirit, in the 'hidden man of the heart' (I Peter 3:4). p.176

Those who prayed in tongues were happy being certain of one thing: God had broken into them and was at work in them. St Paul distinguishes between prayer in the spirit (pneuma) and prayer in the mind (nous) and identifies prayer in the spirit with praying in foreign tongues. (1 Cor. 14:15 and 1 Cor 14:14).

"for St Paul, spirit and mind are almost identical: he sometimes says that the highest purpose of Christianity is the renewal of the spirit and sometimes the renewal of the nous (mind). Nevertheless in trying to distinguish between the two, I would say that the spirit is present in the mind as something higher, deeper than the mind itself - that is revealed through the mind, just as the soul can be said to be revealed through the emotions". p.177

Prayer in the spirit is identified with prayer in tongues, when man's spirit is aware of the irruption of God into his life. In this kind of prayer the highest faculty of the human being is inspired by God, receiving his energy. Man then surrenders to the breath of the Holy Spirit, .., and the Spirit intercedes with unutterable groanings (Rom. 8:26) for those in whom He dwells, sometimes with words which are beyond the understanding of the psychological man.

In prayer of the mind, by contrast, the mind rises toward God in pious thought and godly desire. Such prayer is characterized by holy contrition or joy, but it is not liable to surrender to the great impetus and boundless spiritual exaltation we have just described. A degree of control is exercised by the person who prays in the mind (nous): he is able to direct his thoughts, desires and feelings.

Total surrender to glossolalia (speaking in tongues) involves a certain loss of control: it is an explosion of grace and joy, and while we are fully aware that God is within us, somehow we deny ourselves any awareness of our fellow members of the Body.

The best explanation for God's gift of tongues to the early Church lies in the necessity of teaching newly converted Christians to pray with their heart rather than just externally, as they were likely to have been used to doing, But the Church soon discovered a deeper way to educate the heart, for She was concerned to cultivate the inner man. She discovered the invocation of the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ. And little by little, the Prayer of the Heart replaced the gift of speaking in tongues. The Jesus Prayer is a way of praying in the spirit without loosing any control of the spirit, and therefore, without running the risk of usurping the space of the other members of the Body of Christ.

In conclusion to speak in tongues or to pray in the spirit is indeed to immerse our nous in the sea of the Spirit. But the Apostle himself prefers to draw us in to shore, that we avoid even the possibility of disorder in the Body of the Church, and that everything be done for the sake of the edification of the people.

If this gift (speaking in tongues) has indeed been given temporarily to some people, perhaps it will enable them to discover the true unbroken Tradition of the Church, the Tradition of the Prayer of the Heart, which is the surest and humblest prayer in the edification, inspiration and salvation of man.. Through this prayer we receive the greatest of all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the gift which will heal our nature and strengthen it 'guiding us into all truth' (John 16:3). It will enable us to bear the fullness of divine love. And this gift will never outlive its purpose - indeed it will accompany us beyond the grave.

It is important that we understand this phenomenon of glossolalia- we must not be seduced by it. But let us above all be gracious to those who believe they have experienced this gift and gently point out to them that it is the beginning of something far greater that will lead them to the heart of the Tradition.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Tomb of St Justin Popovich in the monastery of Chelije Valjevo, Serbia

The Grace of Mindfulness of Death

In the book, “Christ Our Way and Our Life”, Archimandrite Zacharias Zacharou writes about many of the stages of the spiritual life, including, remembrance of death. He is an Archimandrite in the monastery of St John the Baptist, in Tolleshunt Knights near Maldon, Essex in England. Archimandrite Zacharias spent decades under the spiritual direction of Elder Sophrony of blessed memory, whom, we know, was himself the disciple of St Silouan the Athonite. Here are some passages from his book;

"Considered within the whole mystery of Christ, death is transformed into a challenge on a sublime and metaphysical level, which inspires ‘repentance unto life’, and mindfulness of death proves to be a gift of the Holy Spirit…The purpose of his (man’s) pre-eternal destiny is the acquisition of eternity as an inalienable possession. ..If life comes to a definitive end with death, it has absolutely no meaning. Awareness of our mortality poses the problem of eternity without accepting concession to anything except God. The grace of God, which seeks out the lost sheep wherever he may be, is able to provoke man'seizing him by the throat’, and intensifying his quandary by bestowing a mindfulness of death, which – according to the experience of Fr. Sophrony – proves, as scalding as a ‘mass of molten metal’.

The remembrance of death, when it takes the form of awareness of eternity in a negative form, is a remarkable ‘calling’ of man to his pre-eternal destiny to become á ‘partaker of the divine nature’ (2 Pet.1:4). This remembrance, which is activated by the grace of God, is a spiritual phenomenon entirely set apart from the natural or psychological knowledge that man is mortal. Charismatic mindfulness of death is a reality of another order, ‘non-earthy, incomprehensible’. It visits man with sovereign might and prepares him to accept the revelation of the Living God. In his heart a new interior sensitivity is born, which changes his spiritual outlook. It is a spiritual state, which assist man, who is as yet unable to contemplate God, in his quest for eternal truth.

Awareness of death is accompanied by ‘a vision, difficult to explain, of the outside world’. This vision reveals the futility of this world and its transitory ephemeral form which lies in the power of the evil one….remembrance of death brings and interior apprehension of the great chasm separating man from the Holy God. When man realizes that he is condemned to die, he becomes terrified, he suffers unbearably. With his spirit he beholds the bottomless pit and remains in this mysterious, indescribable sphere, whilst his mind and affections live normal everyday life.

The charismatic gift of mindfulness of death is essential for the spiritual development of the Christian. It is the starting point of his rebirth in God. When his awareness of death intensifies, man despises all the visible world and all the events of life- even intellectual assets, for they are unable to afford an answer to his search. Whatever does not remain for all eternity has no value and ceases to attract the attention of man. This grace given awareness brings with it a revelation which, although in negative form, is effective and reveals the depth of Being. In an eschatological perspective, the material world loses its consistency , and time loses its duration, the revelatory experience of this captivates the spirit of man, and casts it into a newly revealed and somber realm where time does not exist.

In this unstable and painful state, man will find rest and support only in the evangelical revelation of the Word of God…The Lord, however hides Himself, with wisdom and love teaching man until such time as he deepens his experience of the mystery of death, and contemplates it ‘not only in the body, in death terrestrial forms, but in eternity’.

He understands the fearful dimensions of death and suffers dreadfully inside the gloomy abyss of the Eternal absence. He looks for a way out. In essence, however, everything, even while it is proclaiming vanity, corruption, and death, is directing him towards knowledge of another Being and its depths. To someone in this sacred state of mind, God is announcing His very Self. Although initially man can see no way out, in fact it all depends on how he directs his spirit at this point. …two apparent solutions may suggest themselves. The first is to treat death as an inevitable fact of nature, of no account, utterly insignificant – one less man on earth. The second way of thinking rejects the first out of deep feeling, desire and yearning that man has in himself for life….

This is where he finds the true solution, as long as he avoids the temptation to blame God for his spiritual suffering, for this would engulf him utterly in the abyss of darkness. If he instead resorts to prayer, he will be born anew….mindfulness of death ..brings about a divestiture of the mind from everything created, concentrating its attention within. This is the most precious condition for ‘re-clothing’ and further development in godliness.

The horror of mindfulness of death gives a foretaste of Gehenna: man is humbled, broken. (It) inspires prayer that vanquishes even the most persistent passions. Remembrance of death teaches man to live without earthly cares, eschatologically, and to find his wealth in all the charisms bestowed by God. …man learns…to feel ontologically united with all the human race. Later, in the ultimate perfection in Christ, this negative experience is transformed into a positive knowledge of the resurrection of the soul and prayer ‘for all Adam’.” Christ Our Way and Our Life, selections from p.71 to p.82 by Archimandrite Zacharias Zacharou, St Tikhon Seminary Press, 2003

After reading the above passage is clear that the spiritual state described by Elder Sophrony and Fr Zacharias is beyond the comprehension of anyone that has not gone through it. In the pages following this passage, Fr Zacharias explains that the state of mindfulness of death in its deepest form immediately precedes the vision of the uncreated light, by the soul thus initiated in eternity!

Monday, March 8, 2010

Description:An examination of the theology of Archimandrite Sophrony. Some of the eight chapters include: The Mystery of the Ways of Salvation, The Path of Hesychasm, Prayer as the Fulfillment of Creation etc. Translated from the original Greek by Sister Magdalen. 275 pages.

Table of Contents

ForewordIntroductionChapter 1 The Hypostatic Principle and its Realization in Human Life1a) The meaning of hypostasis1b) The primordial glory of man1c) The delusion of an impersonal absolute

Chapter 2 The Kenosis of the Lord and the Salvation of Man2a) The kenosis of the word of God2b) The way of Thy commandments2c) Love - to the point of self-hatred

Chapter 3 Separation and Restoration3a) The greatness and nullity of man3b) Death3c) The grace of mindfulness of death3d) Spiritual mourning and tears3e) The despair which is pleasing to God

Chapter 4 The Mystery of the Ways of Salvation4a) The grace of our call4b) When grace is withdrawn4c) Grace is regained4d) Knowing the way

Chapter 5 Monasticism and Spiritual Fatherhood5a) Monasticism as a gift of the Holy Spirit5b) Fidelity to the monastic vows heals the estrangement brought about by original sin5c) Spiritual fatherhood as a ministry of reconciliation between man and God

Chapter 6 The Path of Hesychasm6a) The Jesus Prayer6b) The practice of the Jesus Prayer6c) Inner prayer6d) The struggle against the imagination

Chapter 7 From the Psychological to the Ontological Level7a) Repentance7b) Ontological regenaration7c) The vision of uncreated light7d) 'Ontological' repentance inspires a two fold vision7e) Ascetic humility and divine humility7f) The ontological content of the person: freedom for self-determination

Chapter 8 Prayer as the Fulfilment of Creation8a) Prayer as personal communion8b) Pure prayer8c) Prayer for the whole world as the manifestation par excellence of the hypostatic principleu8d) Love for one's enemies as a criterion of truth

Description:Inspired presentations on the nature and purpose of human experience in St. Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938) and Elder Sophrony of Essex (1896-1993) with an Appendix comprised of two lectures on monasticism. The author is a disciple of Elder Sophrony and a member of the monastery of St. John the Baptist, England. 254 pages.Table of ContentsForewordSaint Silouan the Athonite and his disciple the elder SophronyMan's birth into eternal lifeKeep thy mind in hell and despair notGod's work of salvation and manPrayer the work of creationOn the Jesus PrayerSpiritual fatherhood as a ministry of reconciliation between man and GodThe presentation of Christ that justified God and manAppendix On Monasticism IOn Monasticism II
This book is available from Light & Life Publishing athttp://www.light-n-life.com/

Hidden Man of the Heartby Archimandrite Zacharias Description:The cultivation of the heart as taught in Orthodox Christian anthropology. 193 pagesTable of ContentsForeword by Bishop Basil EsseyPrefaceIntroduction: The Mystery of Man's HeartCh1 The Awakening of the Heart through Mindfulness of DeathCh2 The Hour of DeathCh3 The Awakening of the Heart through Fear of GodCh4 The Awakening of the Heart through bearing Shame in the Sacrament of ConfessionCh5 The Building up of the Heart by Vigilance and PrayerCh6 Prayer as Infinite CreationCh7 The Building up of the Heart by the Grace of RepentanceCh8 On RepentanceCh 9 On Repentance and the Struggle against the PassionsCh 10 On Repentance within the Body of the ChurchCh 11 The Building up of the Heart by the Crucifixion of the MindCh 12 'Go in and you will find rest'Ch13 The deep heart , new energies and true humilityCh14 The Word of God, Divine Inspiration and Prophetic LifeCh15 On the gift of Speaking in TonguesEpilogue: Sermon for the Leave-taking of the Feast of the Meeting of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in the Temple
This book is available from Light & Life Publishing athttp://www.light-n-life.com/

St Silouan the Athoniteby Archimandrite Sophrony Sakharov

Description:In the autumn of 1892 a young Russian peasant named Simeon from the province of Tambov was drawn to that ancient repository of Orthodox spirituality, Mount Athos. He had done his military service and now came to the Russian Monastery of St Panteleimon, to embark on long years of spiritual combat lasting until his death in 1938. 504 pages. From the backcover.

Table of ContentsPART I The Staretz's Life and Teaching1. Childhood and early years2. Arrival on Mt Athos3. Monastic Strivings4. Portrait of the Staretz5. The Staretz Doctrinal Teaching6. Pure Prayer and Mental Stillness7. The Imagination and the Ascetic Struggle against its Various Aspects8. Uncreated Divine Light and Ways of Contemplation9.Grace and Consequent Dogmatic Consciousness10. Spiritual Trials11. 'Keep Thy Mind in Hell and Despair Not'12. The Divine Word and the Bounds of Created Nature13. On the purport of Prayer for the World AFTERWORD14. The Staretz Demise15. Testimonies PotscriptumPART IIThe Writings of Staretz Silouan1. Yearning for God2. On Prayer3. On Humility4. On Peace5. On Grace6. On the Will of God and on Freedom7. On Repentance8. On the Knowledge of God9. On Love10. We are Children of God and in the Likeness of the Lord11. On the Mother of God12. On the Saints13. Concerning Shepherds of Souls14. Concerning Monks15. Concerning Obedience16. Concerning Spiritual Warfare17. Concerning Intrusive Thoughts and Delusions18. Adam's Lament19. Reminiscences and Conversations20. Thoughts, Advice and Observations on Asceticism
This book is available from St Vladimir's Seminary Press and Bookstore athttp://www.svspress.com/

His Life is Mineby Archimandrite Sakharov

Description:
"The book is permeated by the awareness that prayer is not just the cultivation of a particular spiritual state, not the investigation of an abstract Idea or dissolution in an anonymous Whole, but encounter with the personal Being, I AM, demanding in turn our own growth in personhood". 128 pages. From the backcover

Table of ContentsIntroductionPart I1. Knowledge of God2. The Enigma of I AM3. The Risk in Creation4. The Tragedy of Man5. Contemplation6. Prayer of the Spirit7. The Bliss of Knowing the Way8. The Struggle in Prayer9. Concerning Repentance and Spiritual Warfare10. Through Dark to Light11. Experience of Eternity through Prayer12. Liturgical Prayer13. The Prayer of Gethsemane

Part II1. The Jesus Prayer2. The Jesus Prayer: Method3. The Jesus Prayer as the Prayer for all Conditions of ManThis book is available from St Vladimir's Seminary Press and Bookstore athttp://www.svspress.com/

On Prayerby Archimandrite Sophrony Sakharov

Description:
"This collection of articles on prayer and the spiritual life, together with some of the author's own prayers, is a moving testimony to the relevance of Christ, who, for Archimandrite Sophrony is 'all and in all, the beginning and the ending of all things cf. Col. 3:11; Rev. 1:8. 208 pages.

Table of ContentsPart I1. Prayer - An ever-new Creation2. Prayer - The Way to Knowledge3. Again, On Prayer4. Spiritual Life5. The Role of Father-Confessor

Part II1. The Jesus Prayer2. The Jesus Prayer: Method3. The Jesus Prayer for all times and occasions

Description:Fr Sophrony speaks (from the Prologue); "My path through life, my experiences may be somewhat out of the ordinary but their essential content I share with millions of souls worldwide. So perhaps this my confession - or, more accurately maybe my spiritual autobiography - will help others to interpret their own ordeals. Of a certainty no initiative of mine provoked the happenings in my inner life. But God of His providence, which is known only to him, vouchsafed to visit me and as it were communicate His eternal Being. His holy hand mercilessly cast me, His creation, into indescribable depths where stunned and appalled, I contemplated realities that transcended my understanding. This is what I shall attempt to write of now. 237 pages.

Table of ContentsPrologue1. The Grace of Mindfulness of Death2. On the Fear of God3. Concerning Repentance4. Spiritual Mourning5. Wavering in Quest of the Unwavering6. The Bliss of Knowing the Way7. Summation of the Life of our Spirit8. Concerning Spiritual Liberty9. Inspiration10. Emptiness: God has withdrawn11. Love - to the Point of Self-hatred12. The Uncreated Light13. The Hypostatic Principle in the Godhead and in the Human Being14. Prayer wherein God is revealed as TruthEpilogue
This book is available from St Vladimir's Seminary Press and Bookstore athttp://www.svspress.com/

We Shall See Him As He Is by Archimandrite Sophrony Sakharov, ISBN 0-9512786-4-9

Wisdom. Let Us Attend: Job, The Fathers, and The Old Testament by Johanna Manley, ISBN: 0-9622536-4-2

Words of Life by Archimandrite Sophrony, Trans. by Sister Magdalen, ISBN1-874679-11-8

Writings from The Philokalia On Prayer of The Heart, Trans. by E. Kadloubovsky and G.E.H. Palmer, ISBN: 0-571-16393-9

This is a journal of my experience as

an Orthodox Christian with an

emphasis on my inner struggle, in

particular; the search for the 'heart'

and its purification, which is the way

to God and to our participation in

His Uncreated Energy.It includes photos and stories of my

travels to Greece, Serbia, Israel and

England.

An Orthodox Pilgrim

"Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it" Matthew 7:14

“Bear in mind that for cleansing your heart from sins you will obtain an infinite reward- you will see God, your most gracious creator, your providence. The work of cleansing the heart is difficult, because it is connected with great privations and afflictions; and therefore, the reward is great. ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God’Matt. 5:8 St John of Kronstadt

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'The soul that has known the Lord

wants to see Him within her at all

times, for the Lord enters the soul

in quietness and gives her peace,

and bears silent witness to

salvation" St Silouan of Athos

"At the edge of your heart the Lord is standing with a tall candle that burns without smoking or melting. The Lord is standing and waiting at your invitation, to bring the candle into your heart and enlighten it, to burn up all the fear in your heart, all its selfish passions and all its ugly desires, and to drive out of your heart all the smoke and foul stench. At the edge of your mind the Lord is standing with His wisdom and with His Word, ready, at your invitation, to enter into it and drive out all its foolish thoughts, all its filthy fancies, and all its mistaken notions, and to erase from your mind all nonexistent images — the Lord is standing and waiting to introduce His reason, His seals, and His words." St Nikolai Velimirovich in Prayers by the Lake LXXIX

A Prayer by St Dimitri of Rostov

Open, O doors and bolts of my heart that Christ the King of Glory may enter!Enter, O my Light and enlighten my darkness;enter, O my Life, and resurrect my deadness;enter, O my Physician and heal my wounds;enter, O Divine Fire, and burn up the thorns of my sins;ignite my inward parts and my heart with the flame of Thy love;enter, O my King, and destroy in me the kingdom of sin;sit on the throne of my heart and alone reign in me,O Thou, my King and Lord.

The Heart is the Battlefield of Our Salvation

What is the heart?, "Thus, asthe bodily heart is the centerof the body's life, the spiritualheart is the center of ourspiritual life",Fr Spyridon Logothetis

Where is the heart? "The heartis within our chest. When wespeak of the heart, we speak ofour spiritual heart which coinci-des with the fleshly one; butwhen man receives illuminationand sanctification, then hiswhole being becomes a heart".Fr Zacharias Zacharou

"(God) is the One who hasfashioned the heart of every manin an unique and unrepeatable way"Fr Zacharias Zacharou.

"It is astonishingly great that Godthe Father, poured from His Spirita noetic sensation (noera aesthisis)or breath to the bodily hearts ofthose who rightly believed in theincarnate Logos". St Kallistos

A heart that has been made aliveby the waters of holy baptism andregeneration of the Holy Spirit hasthe kingdom of God within, "thekingdom of God is within you".Luke 17:21

"Since the kingdom of God is withinus, the heart is the battlefield ofour salvation, and all ascetic effortis aimed at cleansing it of allfilthiness, and preserving it purebefore the Lord". Fr Zacharias

The darkness and desolation of aheart ravished by sin is indeedapalling. In a heart that has notbeen purified, "there aredragons and there are lions;there are poisonous beasts andall the treasures of evil".St Macarius

"For it is within you, that is, itdepends upon your own wills, andit is in your own power, whetheror not you receive it. For everyman who has attained tojustification by means of faith inChrist, and is adorned by allvirtue, is counted worthy of thekingdom of heaven".St Cyril of Alexandria

And with the kingdom we receiveall the treasures of Grace. "Butthere is also God, also the angels,the life and the kingdom, the lightand the apostles, the treasures ofGrace -there are all things".St Macarius

Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.Lead me in the path of yourcommandments, for I delight in it.Turn my heart to your decrees, andnot to selfish gain.Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; give me life in your ways.Psalm 119:34-37

Prayer of Archimandrite Sophrony of Essex

"Oh Lord, I am weak. Thou knowest

this. In fear I seek the way to Thee.

Despise me not. Forsake me not in

my fall. Draw near even unto me,

who am of no account, yet I thirst

after Thee. Take up Thine abode

in me and do Thou Thyself perform

in me all that Thou hast

commanded of us. Make me Thine

for ever and ever, in love

unshakeable."

Recommended Reading List is at the bottom of the posts.

About Me

I am a lay Orthodox Christian.
Education: B.Sc. Biology and Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, P.R.; The George Washington University, Medical Technology, Associate member of the American Society for Clinical Pathology